Juuuuust A Bit Outside: The Best (and Worst) from MLB's Broadcast Booths

Back in the golden age of baseball broadcasting, legends like Mel Allen, Ernie Harwell, and Harry Kalas quickly proved that no sport so seamlessly married the functionaries in the booth with the actors on the field. The intricate, plodding pace of the game demanded a quality man at the mic. Unfortunately, the current batch of broadcasters is a little more hit and miss: Buck Martinez has a voice like a cheese grater, Michael Kay slurps self-import like it were a protein shake, and Greg Brown may (or may not) be totally racist.

Over the last month, in an effort to tease out the best and worst examples of modern-day broadcasting, we’ve sampled the local offerings from all 30 major league clubs, and it turns out that calling a decent game requires a surprisingly simple—yet often elusive—formula. A good broadcast engages the action without smothering the game while a poor broadcast is cluttered with needless talk, distractions, and blatant homerism. That isn’t to say that an announcer shouldn’t unleash a bit more pep for the home team. That’s natural, since it matches the emotional curve of his audience. But a skilled sportscaster can convey that through the pitch of his voice, not the words coming out of his mouth. (We’re looking at you, Hawk Harrelson.) Read on to see our top- and bottom-5 broadcast teams, but keep in mind: there are a number of organizations that employ a rotation of announcers. For this ercise we’ve selected specific configurations. Also, these rankings are limited to TV broadcasters, so for better or for worse, no Bob Uecker and no Suzyn Waldman. Now let’s get to it…

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